Grady shook his head, parking his truck in front of a two-story bungalow on a quiet street. “Sophie?”
“Yeah.”
“Let it go.”
Grady climbed out of the truck and stood in front of it, waiting for the pouty brunette to join him. When she did, she had a sheepish look on her face. “I’m sorry.”
“I know,” Grady said, giving her a quick kiss. “You overthink everything. I’m used to it.”
“Still, you went out of your way for me.”
Grady stuck his fingers in his ears. “La-la-la.”
Sophie snorted, grabbing his arm and jerking his hands down. “Fine. I get it. I’m being ridiculous.”
Grady kissed the tip of her nose. “Let’s get this done. I’m hungry.”
Sophie linked her fingers with his, letting him lead her up the cobblestone steps to the modest ranch house. Grady knocked and waited.
The woman who answered was old and tiny. Sophie couldn’t be sure, but if the woman cleared five feet, it would be some sort of miracle.
“I don’t buy things from people,” the woman barked, pointing at the “no solicitors” sign on the front door. “You’re trespassing.”
Grady pasted a wide smile on his handsome face and tucked a strand of shoulder-length hair behind his ear. “Do I look like I’m selling something?”
“Are you a boy or a girl?”
Grady frowned as Sophie stifled a giggle. “I’m a boy.”
“Are you sure? Your hair would seem to suggest otherwise.”
“Ma’am … .”
“Edna.”
“Excuse me?”
“If you’re going to stand on my front porch and bug me, you might as well call me by my name,” the woman said.
“Edna,” Grady said, spreading his hands out in a placating manner. “We’re not selling anything.”
“Then what do you want?”
“I want to know about your neighbor,” Grady said, pointing to the house next door.
“Why?”
“I’m investigating him,” Grady said, deciding honesty was the best policy. “He accosted my brother and his fiancée up in Michigan earlier this week, and I’m trying to find some information on his comings and goings.”
Edna’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“Really.”
“I don’t know a lot about him,” she admitted. “He’s quiet. He keeps to himself. He’s really not a bad neighbor.”
“How long has he lived there?” Sophie asked.
“About five years,” Edna said.
“Does anyone ever visit him?”
“Well, he’s not a monk, if that’s what you mean,” Edna said. “A few people come around from time to time.”
“Women? Men?”
“Always men,” she said. “I’m pretty sure he’s a fruit.”
Grady stilled. “A fruit?”
“You know, a fruit loop,” Edna said.
Grady was fairly certain he knew what Edna was alluding to, but he wanted to be one-hundred-percent sure. “Are you saying he’s gay?”
“He doesn’t look particularly happy,” Edna said.
Grady fought the urge to strangle the elderly woman. “That’s not what I meant.”
“I know,” Edna said. “I’m just kind of curious how many different ways you can skirt around the question before you actually ask it.”
Grady scowled.
“We’re asking if he’s a homosexual,” Sophie said, grinning so hard she looked as if her face was about to split.
“Oh, you want to know if he’s a butt bandit, don’t you?”
Grady took a step back. “That’s pretty insulting.”
“It’s not like I called him a faggot,” Edna said.
Grady struggled to collect himself. “Why do you think that Mr. Anderson is … homosexual?”
“Because only men stop by,” Edna said. “And when they do, it’s always a different one. They go in, spend the night, and then leave in the morning.”
“Like an escort service?” Sophie asked, narrowing her eyes.
“I think they’re male whores,” Edna said.
Sophie fought the mad urge to laugh. “Can you be sure that they’re … what you think they are?”
Edna shrugged. “What else would they be? They all look like models, like this one, and then they all leave and never come back. That doesn’t sound like a friend to me.”
“I’m not gay,” Grady said.
“If that’s your story,” Edna replied.
“This is my girlfriend,” Grady said, gesturing to Sophie.
“You poor girl,” Edna said, shaking her head. “You’re dating a poof. Well, you’ll figure it out some day.”
“THAT woman is evil,” Grady announced once they were back in his truck.
“You’re just saying that because she doesn’t like your hair,” Sophie said. “That’s never happened to you before.”
“My hair is awesome,” Grady said, merging onto the freeway. “Keep your eye on the exits. When you decide what you want to eat, we’ll stop and get some food.”
“Okay,” Sophie said, smirking as she stared out the window.
“Stop doing that,” Grady ordered.
“Doing what?”
“Thinking about what that evil woman said.”
“Oh, honey, isn’t it enough that I love your hair?”
“Are you a boy or a girl?” Grady mimicked.
“You should have dropped your pants and proven your masculinity.”
“You’re not funny.”
Sophie was quiet for a moment, her mind obviously busy as she mulled their conversation with Edna. “Do you think she’s right about Anderson being gay?”
Grady shrugged. “She thought I was gay. I don’t put much faith in her powers of observation.”
“I think … .” Sophie broke off, unsure.
Grady had learned a long time ago that when Sophie was on to something, she was usually right. “What do you think?”
“I might be way off here,” she warned.
Grady waited.
“What if Anderson was so upset about Jeff Pace dying because … well … they were more than friends?”
Grady leaned back in his seat, his face contemplative. “I don’t know,” he said. “I would think that would be hard to hide.”
“Isn’t homosexuality still frowned upon in the military?”
“It’s complicated.”
Sophie lifted an eyebrow.
“I think most soldiers are fine with it,” Grady said. “I think there are some, though, that probably aren’t. You know how that goes.”
“Don’t ask, don’t tell.”
“That’s not the way of the world anymore.”
“I know,” Sophie said. “That doesn’t mean that keeping something like that hidden might not appeal to some people.”
“Huh.”
“Huh good, or huh bad?”
“Right now? Just huh. I need to think about this.”
“You think I’m right,” Sophie said, crossing her arms over her chest smugly.
“I think you’re beautiful.”
“And right.”
“You might be right.”
“Tell me I’m right.”
“Sophie?”
“Yeah.”
“Let it go.”
Twenty
“Mom, I don’t think this is a good idea,” Ally whispered.
“Of course it’s a good idea,” Rose said, resting the brown paper bag she was carrying against her hip as she pointed at the closed apartment door. “Open it.”
“Mom … .” Ally had agreed to make the early-morning trip to James’ apartment with her mother, but now she was rethinking the plan.
“You have a key, don’t you?”
“I do,” Ally hedged.
“Then open the door.”
“Mom, it’s early,” Ally said. “They’re probably still asleep.”
“Which is why a pre-wedd
ing breakfast in bed is a wonderful gift,” Rose said.
“Why don’t we make them breakfast and leave it in the kitchen?” Ally suggested, rummaging through her pocket for her key ring. “I think they’ll appreciate that more.”
“That’s not romantic.”
“Mom … what if they’re naked?”
“Why would they be naked?” Rose scoffed.
“Because they live together, and they have sex,” Ally said. “I think they’re naked a lot.”
“They wouldn’t be naked this close to the wedding,” Rose countered. “They’re saving themselves for the wedding night.”
“They’re not saving themselves.”
“Of course they are.”
“I can pretty much guarantee that they’re not,” Ally argued.
“Open the door, Ally.”
“If James explodes, I’m blaming you when I run,” Ally grumbled, slipping her key into the lock.
Rose entered first, wrinkling her nose as she glanced around the apartment and unloaded the shopping bag on the kitchen counter. “This place is a mess.”
“They’re packing.”
“It’s still a mess.”
“Go and cook your breakfast, Mom.” Ally sank down onto one of the dining room chairs, frowning when she saw her mother tiptoeing toward the bedroom. “I wouldn’t.”
Rose held her index finger up to her lips to silence her daughter. Rose wasn’t naïve. She knew none of her children were virgins. She knew James and Mandy hadn’t waited for marriage to fall into bed together. They lived together, for crying out loud. She knew they were having sex. Even knowing that, the sight that greeted her through her son’s open bedroom door was still shocking.
Mandy was sleeping on top of James. Not just next to him, but on top of him. James had an arm wrapped tightly around her waist, and the other was buried beneath the fan of blonde hair that was stretched across her back. Despite her hair, Rose could see that the girl was naked, her bare shoulders poking out as an obvious form of proof.
James’ face was pressed to Mandy’s forehead, his eyes closed, and a content expression gracing his features.
While the sight would horrify most mothers, there was something so sweet about the way they held each other that Rose couldn’t hold in her sigh. They were so in love it almost hurt to look at them.
James jerked awake at the sound, his hand traveling to the nightstand in one fluid motion, and before she realized what was happening, Rose found her son’s gun pointed at her.
“James!”
James bolted upright, keeping Mandy pressed tight to his chest. “Mom?”
“What are you doing?”
James glanced at the gun and ruefully placed it back on the nightstand. “What are you doing here?”
“I … I … .”
“What’s going on?” Mandy asked, her voice sleepy. “Can’t you even wait until I’m awake?”
“My mom is here,” James grumbled.
Mandy’s eyes flew open. “Oh.” She glanced down at her bare chest, which was crushed against James’ warm skin. “Oh.”
“Mom!”
“I was going to make you breakfast in bed,” Rose said.
“Well, great,” James said. “This is just how I saw my morning going. My mom just happens to walk into my bedroom to see me naked.”
“I didn’t see you naked,” Rose countered. “I saw more of Mandy than you.”
“Oh, please tell me I’m dreaming,” Mandy muttered.
Ally appeared in the doorway. “It’s not so funny when it’s you, is it?”
“You brought her here?” James asked.
“She wanted to make you breakfast in bed.”
“After what happened at your place, I thought we’d agreed to knock?”
“Well, at least you two weren’t having sex,” Ally shot back.
Rose wrinkled up her nose. “Wait.”
“Don’t think about it, Mom,” Ally instructed.
“Does that mean you walked in on your sister … ?”
“Making the beasts with two backs?” Mandy offered. “Yes.”
“Mandy!” Ally was irate.
“Hey, I’m the one who is naked here.”
“I’m naked, too,” James said. “By the way, baby, can you move your knee just a little? I’m not wearing a cup.”
Ally smirked.
“I’m so embarrassed,” Rose said, fanning herself with her hand.
“And yet you’re still standing there,” James said.
Rose glanced around guiltily. “Maybe I should just go?”
“I thought you wanted to make them breakfast?” Ally asked.
James scorched Ally with a hateful look.
“How about I make it in the kitchen?” Rose offered. “That will give you two a chance to make yourselves presentable.”
“Oh, do you suddenly have a time machine?” James barked.
“Oh, suck it up,” Ally said. “Why don’t you two get dressed? I’ll help Mom make breakfast.”
Rose had already vacated the doorway, and Ally made a move to follow.
“Ally?”
She stilled. “What?”
“Shut the door!”
“I MADE your favorite,” Rose said, hovering next to James’ chair nervously. “Blueberry pancakes and fresh bacon.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s still your favorite, right?”
“I love the pancakes, Mom.”
“You’re not eating them.”
“I just sat down.”
“You’re not making eye contact,” Rose pressed.
“That’s because I can never look you in the eye again,” James replied.
Mandy exhaled heavily, blowing her tousled bangs out of her face. “The pancakes are great.”
“Do you like pancakes?” Rose asked hopefully.
“I do.”
“She prefers eggs and hash browns,” James said.
“Oh, I had forgotten,” Rose said, worrying her bottom lip nervously. “Do you have eggs? I can make you some eggs.”
“The pancakes are great,” Mandy said. “I eat eggs all the time. This is a nice change.”
“I can make eggs,” Rose said, reaching for Mandy’s plate. “I’ll make you eggs.”
“Mom, leave her plate alone,” James growled. “Sit down. You’re making me nervous.”
“I’m really sorry,” Rose said. “Ally told me it was a bad idea. I just thought … I don’t know what I thought.”
“She thought you were celibate until the wedding,” Ally said, grinning as she speared a big forkful of her own pancakes. “These are awesome, Mom.”
“Why would we be celibate?”
“I don’t know,” Rose said, shrugging. “I thought it would make the wedding night more special.”
“The wedding night is going to be special regardless,” James said. “I see no reason to remain celibate until then.”
“It’s because he’s a sex maniac,” Ally offered.
“Says the woman who had had sex in front of her brother,” Mandy mumbled.
Ally flicked a piece of bacon at Mandy from across the table. James plucked it out of the air and bit into it.
“The bacon is good,” he said.
“It always was your favorite,” Rose said.
“Mom, it’s fine,” James said. “It’s not like you saw anything, and we weren’t doing anything but sleeping. Just … let it go.”
“I’m so sorry,” Rose said.
“I know.”
“I’m really sorry.”
“I know.”
“I’m … .”
“Mom! Sit down!”
Rose slid into one of the open seats. She was clearly distraught, because her eyes were darting every which way but in the direction of her son. “So, Mandy, you must be excited.”
“Why?”
“Well, your mother arrives today, of course,” Rose said.
Mandy swallowed hard. “Is it Thursday?”
“Crap.”
Rose frowned. “You’re not excited to see your mother?”
“I love my mother,” Mandy said. “I’m not excited to hear about how I’ve totally screwed up the wedding, though.”
“Why would she think that?”
“She’s going to hate the dress.”
“That dress is beautiful, baby,” James said, reaching over so he could push her hair away from her face.
“She’s going to hate the bridesmaids’ dresses.”
“Those dresses are great,” Ally replied. “I look like a goddess in mine.”
James couldn’t help but smirk. “I haven’t seen the bridesmaids’ dresses, but if Ally, Sophie, and Emma are happy, why does it matter?”
“She won’t like them,” Mandy grumbled.
“As long as you like them, it’s fine.”
“She’s going to hate that we’re having the wedding in the yard of the new house,” Mandy said. “She always pictured a church wedding.”
“The backyard is beautiful,” Ally said. “It’s going to look amazing. Wait until she sees the arch we picked out.”
“She’s still going to hate it.”
James’ heart flopped. The unhappy look on Mandy’s face was the last thing he wanted to see. “Why don’t you let me talk to her?”
“What are you going to say?”
“I’m very charming when I want to be,” James said. “I think I can win her over.”
“Mary is coming to spend time with her daughter,” Rose said. “No offense, dear, but she’s not going to want to spend time with you.”
“Still,” James said. “I can talk to her.”
“No,” Mandy said. “I might as well get all of her disappointment out of the way.”
“Baby, you’re the best person I know,” James said. “If she finds any reason to be disappointed in you, she’s not a very good mother.”
Rose’s mouth dropped open. “James Hardy! That woman was in labor for twenty-five hours to give birth to that girl. She has every right to feel what she feels.”
Mandy furrowed her brow. “Twenty-five hours?”
“That’s what she told me.”
“She is such a liar,” Mandy said, cracking her first real smile of the morning.
“She wasn’t in labor for twenty-five hours?”
“Six.”
James snickered.
“Well, it’s still painful,” Rose said. “Maybe it felt like twenty-five hours.”
“Maybe,” Mandy conceded. “I’m just going to have to deal with it. When she finds out that I don’t want Richard to walk me down the aisle, then things are just going to get worse.”
Deadly Ever After (Hardy Brothers Security Book 6) Page 15
